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Bible Lexicons
Old Testament Hebrew Lexical Dictionary Hebrew Lexicon
Strong's #6432 - פְּלֵתִי
- Brown-Driver-Briggs
- Strong
Pelethites = “couriers”
1) a collective name for the guardsmen of David
1a) probably descendants of an unknown person, perhaps Philistine mercenaries
- Book
- Word
פְּלֵתִי m. a public courier; with the art. collect. public couriers, always joined with כְּרֵתִי, which see, 2 Samuel 8:18, 15:18 20:7, 23 2 Samuel 20:23. Ewald (Heb. Gram. page 297) supposes both כְּרֵתִי (see that word, No. 2) and פְּלֵתִי to be Philistines; the latter being for the sake of paronomasia for פְּלִשְׁתִּי.
I. פֵּן m. i.q. fem. (which is more used) פִּנָּה a corner, Proverbs 7:8. Plur. פִּנִּים Zechariah 14:10.
II. פֵּן pr. subst. removing, taking away (from the root פָּנָה Pi. No. 1), always in constr. פֶּן־ (followed by Makkeph) it becomes a conj. of removing, prohibiting, hindering, i.q. μή, ne, lest. It is used
(1) where an action precedes, by which something is prohibited which we fear and wish removed. Genesis 11:4, “let us build for ourselves a city … פֶּן־נָפוּץ lest we be scattered abroad.” Genesis 19:15, “rise up … פֶּן־תִּסָּפֶה lest thou perish.” Genesis 3:3, “eat not … פֶּן־תְּמוּתוּן “lest ye die.” Hence after verbs of fearing (like the Gr. δείδω, μή, Lat. vereor ne), Genesis 31:31 (compare 26:9 of taking heed (compare Gr. ἱδεῖν μή́), Genesis 24:6, 31:24 Deuteronomy 4:23 and also of swearing (compare ὀμνύω μή, Il. xxiii. 585), Judges 15:12. In instances of this kind אַל is never put.
(2) it stands at the beginning of a sentence, where
(a), it implies prohibition and dissuasion (like אַל). Job 32:13, פֶּן תּאֹמְרוּ “say not” i.e. take heed “lest ye say.” Isaiah 36:18, פֶּן יַסִּית אֶתְכֶם חִזְקִיָּהוּ “(take heed) lest Hezekiah deceive you.”
(b) it implies fear, dread. Genesis 3:22, וְעַתָּה פֶּן־יִשְׁלַח יָדוֹ וגו׳ “and now (for fear) lest he put forth his hand.” Genesis 44:34, פֶּן־אֶרְאֶה בָרָע וגו׳ “(I fear) lest I shall behold the evil,” etc.; 31:31 38:11 42:4 Exodus 13:17; Numbers 16:34; 1 Samuel 13:19. Followed by a pret. when it is feared lest any thing should have been done. 2 Samuel 20:6, פֶּן מָצָא “lest he find.” 2 Kings 2:16, פֶּן־נְשָׂאוֹ רוּחַ יְהוָֹה “(I fear) lest the spirit of Jehovah have taken him up.” Once it very nearly approaches to an adverb of negation, i.q. אַל Proverbs 5:6, אֹרַח חַיִּים פֶּן תְּפַלֵּס “(the adulteress) prepareth not (for herself) the way of life,” i.e. she does not walk in the way of life. But the entire sentence is, (she takes heed) lest she walk in the way of life; German daß fie doch ia den Weg des Lebens nicht beträte.
